The present invention relates to a capped fishing skirt and a method of making the same.
Fishing skirts generally comprise a head or collar member and a plurality of attached trailing strands made from an elastomer. The strands of the skirt tend to pulsate as the skirt is pulled through the water which attracts fish. These strands can also function to conceal a hook. A skirt can be formed from a flat sheet of cured elastomer which is cut to have a tab at one end and elongate trailing filaments at the other end. The skirt is generally wrapped around a lure such as a jig or spinner in the form of a tube and attached by securing the waistband around a portion of the lure, usually a groove or collar on the lure. The skirt may be compounded with various colors, glitter and other visual enhancements to attract fish under various fishing conditions. More than one overlapping skirt can be provided to achieve multiple layers and a variety of effects. The skirt may be attached to the lure by a flexible collar, rubber band, or may be tied on with thread.
Skirts are generally divided into two groups being banded skirts and roll up skirts. With a banded skirt rubber bands and elastomer collars are frequently used to secure the strands in place. Banded skirts are usually sold to fishing lure manufactures. An example of a banded skirt can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,251,395. The roll up skirt is formed by rolling and bonding the border of a skirt to an elastomeric core piece with an adhesive. The roll up skirts, are often sold directly to fisherman. Some examples of roll up skirts include U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,960,580 and 6,418,659.
One method of making a fishing lure skirt is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,960,580. In order to make the skirt, an apertured core of cured silicone rubber is provided. The inner surface of the waistband of a skirt blank is coated with a liquid adhesive, wrapped around the core and the adhesive is allowed to cure. To maintain tension on the wrapped portion, apertures must be formed in the waistband and passed over pins to hold the wrapped portion under tension during curing. This is a time consuming process requiring special equipment. Also, there is no opportunity to insert glitter or color to the head of the skirt.